(December 18, 2024 – Minneapolis, Minnesota) Today, Thomas More Society attorneys secured entry of agreed judgments, with attorney’s fees and costs, against the City of Minneapolis in a lawsuit brought against the city on behalf of Pro-Life Action Ministries and its staff and volunteers. Pro-Life Action Ministries v. City of Minneapolis challenged the city’s anti-speech ordinance that prohibited peaceful counseling on the public sidewalk crossing the driveway to the city’s Planned Parenthood abortion facility. The City of Minneapolis has now amended the speech-restricting law to exempt pro-life sidewalk counseling activities, after originally enacting it to curb the efforts of Pro-Life Action Ministries.  

The Minneapolis City Council adopted the necessary amendment to its anti-speech ordinance earlier this month, adding language to exempt those like Pro-Life Action Ministries and its volunteers who are engaged in “conduct protected by the United States Constitution, the Minnesota Constitution, or federal or Minnesota law.” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey signed into law the amended ordinance on December 10. The offers of judgment entered on December 18 give Pro-Life Action Ministries and its staff and volunteers a full victory against the City of Minneapolis, on all claims made in their complaint, including nominal damages and attorney’s fees and costs, which will be determined by the court.

Thomas More Society attorneys sued the City of Minneapolis in April 2023 on behalf of Pro-Life Action Ministries, a Minnesota-based pro-life ministry that is dedicated to publicly defending the sanctity of human life through sidewalk counseling. First enacted in November 2022, Minneapolis’ City Code Chapter 405 buffer zone ordinance prohibited pro-life advocates from entering the public sidewalk crossing the Planned Parenthood driveway while sidewalk counseling, unconstitutionally restricting their First Amendment-protected speech in a traditional public forum. Thomas More Society’s complaint alleged that the Minneapolis buffer zone ordinance violated freedom of speech, freedom of expressive association, and the freedom of religious expression, as guaranteed by the First Amendment. With litigation settled and the city’s buffer zone ordinance amended, pro-life sidewalk counselors in Minneapolis are again free to share their message of hope with abortion-minded women.  

Peter Breen, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President & Head of Litigation, stated: “We are incredibly pleased with this victory against the City of Minneapolis and its unconstitutional no-speech zone law. Minneapolis thought it could get away with targeting pro-life speech by creating an unconstitutional, content-based no-speech zone—crafted exclusively for the purpose of hamstringing pro-life sidewalk counseling efforts outside of the city’s Planned Parenthood abortion facility. Today, we’ve won a total victory against this sort of viewpoint discrimination, and our dear friends and clients at Pro-Life Action Ministries can go about their life-saving efforts without fear or threat of penalties for sharing their life-saving message.” 

Brian Gibson, Chief Executive Officer of Pro-Life Action Ministries, added: “We are elated that the City of Minneapolis has recognized their fault in suppressing our First Amendment rights. This is a win for the unborn babies. Having our rights restored will increase the possibility to help women and save more babies from abortion. Other cities need to take note to never simply do Planned Parenthood’s bidding and interfere with citizens Constitutional rights.” 

 Read the Offers of Judgment, filed December 18, in Pro-Life Action Ministries, et al. v. City of Minneapolis, here.  

Read background on Pro-Life Action Ministries, et al. v. City of Minneapolis, here.